An app released Thursday designed by a University of Michigan graduate student and a team of mathematician’s claims to make it easier to fight jet lag.
The “old-fashioned” rule of jet lag is known to be that for every hour you go forward or backward its take a day to adjust. This new app is titled “Entrain” after the term “entrainment” which is the scientific term for adjusting to a new time zone. The app works by suggesting when users should be exposed to what intensity of light based on the amount of hours they will lose or gain.
According to the mathematicians behind the app it is able to cut jet-lag time by four or five days depending on the distance of the trip and how strictly the apps suggestion are followed.
“In your brain you have a central circadian clock … [that] sends signals all throughout the body,” stated Danny Forger, professor of mathematics and computational medicine at Michigan University. Exposure to light has a great effect on how the clock regulates itself and the rest of the body.
Forger used two different math equations formulated by NASA and simulated over 1,000 possible trips that would require time-zone adjustments. These equations help to determine the schedules needed for the fastest possible adjustment times.
There is an hourly breakdown of showing what times you should be exposed to what light. The “Metrics” page of the app features graphs of old and new sleeping schedules and shows you when the two begin to overlap and when you should be fully adjusted.
The app also has a feature that allows you to log your sleep patterns. If your sleep patterns are logged the accuracy of the app is greatly increased.
If you have downloaded the app and wish to send your data to the University of Michigan there is also a feature that will send your data directly to them.
“Entrain” has yet to be flight-tested however, it is available in the App Store on Itunes for free on any iOS device.